Tripp Testimony To Take At Least Another Week, Attorney Says

WASHINGTON (AllPolitics, July 12) -- Linda Tripp's testimony before Independent Counsel Ken Starr's grand jury, which resumes Tuesday, will last "at least another week and maybe more," one of her attorneys said Sunday.

Anthony Zaccagnini declined to comment on what has been going on inside the grand jury room. But he told NBC's "Meet The Press" that "I think it's fair to say that the grand jury has been involved in [the questioning of Tripp.]"

Saying he was complying with Tripp's wishes, Zaccagnini also declined to reveal whether grand jurors had listened to any of the approximately 20 hours of telephone conversations between Tripp and former White House intern Monica Lewinsky that Tripp allegedly taped.

"One thing that Linda has always wanted to do is protect the integrity of the investigation," he said on CNN's "Late Edition." "She doesn't want to give [grand jurors] the impression that she is stepping out on the courthouse steps ... and relating to the public what's going on inside the grand jury."

Tripp's attorneys fan out to defend her

Zaccagnini and Tripp's other attorney, Joe Murtha, fanned out to the Sunday television talk shows to defend their client, who has taken a public battering over her decision to tape Lewinsky's phone calls, during which Lewinsky reportedly said she had a sexual relationship with President Clinton.

Tripp and Lewinsky became friends when both worked at the Pentagon after leaving the White House. Tripp's attorneys said again Sunday that their client's motivation for taping the phone calls was that Lewinsky was asking her to testify untruthfully about an alleged encounter between Clinton and Kathleen Willey and, later, about Lewinsky's alleged relationship with Clinton.

"It had become an aggressive and almost desperate attempt on {Lewinsky's] behalf to have Linda not tell the truth. And that was completely against what Linda believed in and what she stands for," Murtha said on "Fox News Sunday."

The tapes are at the center of Starr's investigation into allegations of perjury and obstruction of justice against Clinton and Lewinsky, who have both denied under oath that they had a sexual relationship.

Tripp's cooperation in Maryland probe undecided

This past week, a Maryland prosecutor, Stephen Montanarelli, announced that a grand jury there would investigate whether Tripp, who taped some conversations with Lewinsky in Maryland, should be prosecuted for taping the phone calls. Under state law, both parties must consent before a telephone conversation can be taped.

Lewinsky's attorneys have indicated previously that she will cooperate with the Maryland probe. But in an interview on "Fox News Sunday," Murtha said it is "a little premature to decide whether or not Linda (Tripp) will cooperate."

"If a subpoena is issued, we'll decided at that time," he said.

But Murtha, a former Maryland prosecutor, called the decision to proceed with an investigation of Tripp "an almost unprecedented event" that "speaks of political motivation."

Under Maryland law, prosecutors not only have to prove that Tripp taped the phone calls but also that she knew such taping was illegal.

"[Montanarelli] has a very serious burden, and some of the obstacles include the fact that he has to show that Linda had knowledge, and, despite that knowledge, she intentionally and recklessly disregarded the law without any justification," Murtha told "Late Edition."

Other revelations from Sunday's interviews with Tripp's attorneys:

Zaccagnini said that after Newsweek reporter Michael Isikoff approached Tripp in March 1997 to ask her what she knew about Willey's allegations that Clinton groped her just outside the Oval Office, Tripp refused to answer his questions and tried to contact Bruce Lindsey, a White House attorney and close Clinton confidant.

In his interview with "Meet The Press," Zaccagnini would not say whether Tripp actually spoke to Lindsey "because that's something that will likely be discussed before the grand jury." Lindsey has been fighting a subpoena to appear before the Starr's grand jury on the grounds of attorney-client privilege.

Murtha said Tripp does not know who wrote a set of "talking points" that Lewinsky allegedly gave her. That document allegedly outlined how Tripp should shape her sworn testimony if asked about the alleged affair between Clinton and Lewinsky.

Zaccagnini and Murtha have been representing Tripp for free, but a legal defense fund set up to pay for her legal expenses "has become rather active," Murtha said.

"We have people who are coming forward showing their support by making contributions," he said on "Fox News Sunday."

Murtha also said that despite all that has happened, Tripp is "not unsympathetic" to Lewinsky.

"She certainly can empathize with the position that Monica is in. But she believes that Monica should go forward, accept the consequences of her act and, most importantly for Monica, tell the truth," Murtha said on "Fox News Sunday."